Hard Rain
by Black Fire1
Summary: What if You-know-who finds out that one of his Death Eaters is a spy? Takes place at the beginning of Harry's 5th year at Hogwarts


Author's note: This story was written spontaneously, since I could not sleep.  
  
I have only just read the Harry Potter series, and this is what my tired brain produced. I know that it might be a bit unusual, but it is my interpretation. A lot of things may seem strange, but I think that there doesn't have to be an immediate explanation. I hope you enjoy the story for what it's worth, write a sequel, prequel, do whatever you feel like doing.  
  
Oh, btw: the story works best when read while listening to classical music. Mozart's Requiem work's best (and, in my opinion, fits Snape).  
  
Hard Rain  
  
Sometime during the first week of his fifth year at Hogwart's, Harry Potter awoke with a start. He'd had a nightmare about Lord Voldemort, which wasn't new to him. However, this time, it was different: Professor Severus Snape, the teacher for Potions, had somehow appeared in this dream, and Harry, who hated Snape (and whom Snape hated back equally), had woken up with the urgent feeling that he needed to go to Snape and warn him. In addition to this thought, he had experienced a jolt of extreme pain in his forehead, where the lightning-bolt shaped scar was. A souvenir from his first meeting with Lord Voldemort.  
  
He sat up, still rubbing his scar, which felt fresh and was very painful. Did that mean that Voldemort was close?  
  
He reached for his glasses, and noticed that his friend Ron Weasley had woken up and was staring at him. "Harry? What are you doing? Did you have a nightmare? I heard you speaking in your sleep. Something about You-know-who and having to warn Snape...What is going on?"  
  
Harry climbed over onto Ron's bed, so that they could talk more closely and quietly.  
  
"I don't know, Ron. I had a nightmare, right, and somehow, Snape was in it, and I woke up with the feeling that I have to warn Snape that Vol-sorry-You- know-who is after him. My scar hurts, and I have the strange feeling that this is urgent. I just want to go and see..."  
  
"Right." Ron said and climbed out of his bed, pulling his robes over his pyjamas.  
  
"We'll go and see what Snape is up to...I trust you and your dreams and your scar enough to risk detention and everything else Snape could do if he catches us."  
  
Harry knew that it was no use trying to stop Ron, so he too pulled on his robes, grabbed his Marauder's Map, and together, hidden underneath Harry's invisibility cloak, they left the bedroom and Gryffindor Tower. Walking towards Snape's office, they checked the Map, on which all people showed up labelled with their names. As they approached Snape's office, they saw a minute figure walking down a corridor, labelled "Severus Snape". He was proceeding at a high speed, and the boys had to run to follow him as he sped through the corridors and out of the castle. They kept their distance, and none of them said a word, knowing that Snape was both very suspicious and had a very sensitive hearing. So if he heard anything, they would be in trouble. Past Hagrid's hut they went, and into the forest, deeper and deeper. Snape walked as if magically drawn towards something. Harry knew that he might be pretending to belong to Lord Voldemort's followers, and had the feeling that he knew where they were heading. As Professor Dumbledore had explained to him, Snape had really been a so-called Death Eater once, but turned his back on the dark side and agreed to work as a spy. This work, Harry presumed, having heard a conversation between Snape and Dumbledore before the summer holidays, he had resumed. Although he still disliked Snape as much as before, he quietly admired his courage. But still-couldn't Snape ever be just a bit...nicer? And what if all this was just a cunning plan, and Snape had never really deserted the Death Eaters? How could Dumbledore be so sure he could trust Snape?  
  
Suddenly, another miniature appeared on the map, and Harry didn't need to read the label to know who it was-the pain in his forehead made it clear enough that they were about to face Lord Voldemort...  
  
Still covered by the cloak, Harry they crept a bit closer, so that they could hear what was going on. It was too late to warn Snape, anyway. Maybe there wasn't anything to warn him about. Maybe Snape wasn't really in danger. But maybe there was something interesting to find out.  
  
"Severus Snape...bow down before your master, your Lord!" the voice said from underneath a hooded cloak. Snape did as he was asked and bowed down immediately.  
  
"There's always one, isn't there, Severus Snape? One who thinks that his treason will go unnoticed, one who thinks that he can fool his master, mock his master, betray him and use the knowledge he has gained against him...Such a man is a fool, do you hear me, Severus, a fool to think that he can get away." With a swift movement of his wand towards Snape, Voldemort hollered: "Get what you deserve, traitor!"  
  
Harry watched as Professor Snape was lifted off the ground and flew backwards, colliding with a tree with a sickening "thudd" and falling limply onto the ground, only to be lifted again like a broken doll, rising higher and higher and dropping down, hitting the ground once more, and another time. His wand was pulled from his cloak, and hovered in the air, out of reach.  
  
"Get up, traitor!" Voldemort hollered, and Snape slowly rolled over onto his stomach, got onto his knees, his long, greasy black hair hiding his face. Painfully slow and swaying, he got up, holding onto a tree with one hand, the other arm hanging uselessly by his side. Voldemort pointed his wand at him again, and Snape's arms spread out, so that he looked like a giant bat. His cloak and robes were torn, and Harry could see that blood was flowing freely from several injuries. Suddenly, Snape screamed, his face contorting into horrible grimaces of pain. Then, he clutched at his neck as if he were being choked. Harry couldn't watch any longer. He grabbed his wand, threw off the invisibility cloak and stepped forwards, shouting "Expelliarmus!" and pointed his wand at Lord Voldemort, who was making the now screaming Snape rise from the ground again.  
  
When his wand flew from his hand, he seemed confused, but spotted Harry immediately and turned his attention towards him. Snape fell to the ground once again.  
  
"Harry Potter-I knew we would meet again. Come to rescue your friend here, how very touching of you. Now, if I could have my wand back..."  
  
The wand stopped in mid-air, and flew back into Voldemort's hand.  
  
"I will deal with you later-now is not the time. As for you, traitor, you are not worthy of death..." With these words, he pointed his wand at Snape once more, who let out a last desperate howl of pain, distracting Harry for a second, and when he looked around, Voldemort had disappeared, leaving a big rock, which Harry knew had to be a portkey of some kind. The rock exploded silently, and everything was quiet, except for the occasional rustling of the leaves.  
  
...  
  
Severus Snape pulled his cloak tightly around himself as he rushed towards the forest. He looked around several time, feeling that someone was following him, that Potter was following him, but since he neither heard nor saw anything conclusive, he put it down to his nerves. Potter still had that invisibility cloak, but he didn't have time to follow this faint feeling and search for someone who might not even be there. There was no time for things like these. Since he couldn't apparate in the school grounds, he had to rush. The dark lord had called...  
  
Upon meeting him in the dark forest, he immediately knew that there was something wrong, that he had been found out. So he stood in silence, hoping that his feeling was wrong, but expecting the worst. He knew that the battle was lost before he could even try to make a move, since Voldemort took control of his body and slammed him into a tree, pinning him there with invisible knives which cut and tore his flesh. Without control of his body, he felt himself being lifted high in the air, then falling, hitting the ground hard and painfully. It felt as if invisible rocks rained down on him, some cut his face, others clobbered his limbs. His wand was hovering just out of reach, mocking him. Severus knew that he had probably broken several bones by now, not counting the stab-wounds. Another rock hit his head, and he passed out briefly. Disoriented and in extreme pain, he felt that he was rising up again, and smashed onto the ground again.  
  
"Get up, traitor!" Voldemort hollered, and Snape knew that he'd better follow the order, even though he was only semi-conscious. Under a lot of pain, and using all his willpower, he turned over, and got onto his knees and finally to his feet. Held there by a spell, he was attacked by the invisible knifes once more, which seemed to cut even deeper into his flesh. A scream escaped, and promptly, he felt himself being choked. Held around his neck, he was dimly aware of being lifted again. This was the end, he knew it. Maybe Voldemort didn't think that a traitor deserved the quick death through Avada Kedavra...  
  
Severus Snape had lost consciousness before his body hit the ground for one final time.  
  
...  
  
"Harry? Harry, are you alright? Is he gone?" a voice called. Ron, who had remained hidden underneath the cloak.. "Yeah, I am fine, and he is gone," replied Harry, trembling and confused as he stepped towards Snape's silent form on the ground.  
  
"Oh my god. Is he...is he...d-dead?" whispered Ron, as he, too approached their teacher.  
  
"I don't know." Harry whispered back, kneeling down. He reached out and touched Snape's shoulder with a trembling finger. "Pro-Professor Snape?" he stammered, poking the teacher lightly. "Professor Snape?" Ron tried, too, in a slightly stronger voice. Still, there was no reply, no sign telling them whether Snape was still alive. Carefully, Harry turned the teacher over on his back, noticing that his hands were covered in something warm and sticky.  
  
Blood. Lots of it.  
  
Quickly, he wiped them clean on his own robes and walked around Snape , kneeling down next to his head. The black hair was covering most of his face. Ron took out his wand and muttered "lumos", and held his wand closer to Snape's head so that Harry could see.  
  
Snape's face and hair were also covered in blood, which seemed to be everywhere. The professor's usually sallow skin was now almost translucently white, so that Harry feared that he had died. Very slowly, he reached out again to touch Snape's neck and feel for a pulse.  
  
The skin was damp and cool to the touch, but he found a slow but steady pulse. And he saw that Snape was still breathing, raggedly, but breathing just the same.  
  
"He's alive, but we need to get him back into the castle quickly, I think. How are we going to get him there?" They tried a spell they had seen Sirius Black use on Snape, but it wouldn't work. Neither of them knew how to create or summon a stretcher: although they both tried the spell they knew, "accio stretcher", nothing happened.  
  
Harry had another idea-if he could get his broom, one of them could fly back to the castle and get help in no time. "Accio Firebolt!" he tried, and waited. "Ron, if my broom should get here, I want you to fly back to the castle and get help. Wake Professor McGonagall...or go  
  
and get Hagrid, just get someone to help us. I'll stay here with Snape until you get back."  
  
The Firebolt, Harry's prized possession, arrived, and Harry nodded towards Ron, who climbed onto the broom and kicked off from the ground.  
  
"What if..." Ron started. "He won't come back. If he had wanted to kill either of us tonight, he would have done it already. Now go!"  
  
"I'll go to Hagrid's first, and send him over, then I go to the castle. I'll be back in no time!" Ron promised as he flew away with Harry's broom.  
  
Alone with the unconscious teacher, Harry felt uneasy. He took his wand and muttered "lumos", so that a light appeared at the end of it. Harry stuck his wand into the earth, so that he had both hands free. He sat down and, not knowing what to do, he tried to wash the blood off the pale face, which usually looked so mean and cruel. Now, Harry didn't see the professor he hated and feared, but an injured man who needed care. Maybe, he thought, maybe he is always that mean because people were mean to him when he was young. Thinking about his own unruly black hair which always looked as if it hadn't been combed, no matter what he did, he thought what Snape must have looked like as a boy. A tall, thin boy with long and greasy hair, sallow skin and Snape's long nose-an unusual boy, even for the wizard world. Maybe it hadn't been easy to be Severus Snape.  
  
A moan from the man on the ground let Harry's thoughts return to the present. Snape didn't regain consciousness, or at least not completely. His eyes never opened, but his head turned to the side, and, to his great surprise, Harry saw a single, big teardrop rolling down the Professor's face. He had to be in extreme pain. Under normal circumstances, Harry would have thought it incredibly funny and impossible to see Snape, a proud man, cry. Circumstances had changed, and he couldn't but feel sorry. Tears burned in his own eyes. If Snape died, Voldemort had taken another victim right in front of Harry.  
  
He didn't want Snape to die, no matter what he usually thought of him. He didn't deserve death. Harry wondered what Voldemort must have done so that Snape couldn't even try to defend himself. Total control of the body, something like the imperius curse, but which you couldn't throw off, because Snape would have fought otherwise. It must have been something very powerful, against which there was no defence, or counter curse. And all the injuries which looked like cuts had to be caused by magic, powerful black magic.  
  
After what seemed like an eternity, heavy footsteps approached, and Harry heard the familiar breathing of Hagrid's boarhound, Fang.  
  
"Harry!" Hagrid hollered. "Harry, are you alright?"  
  
"Yes, Hagrid, I'm fine, but Professor Snape-" Harry couldn't continue, because he was choking on his tears now.  
  
Hagrid hugged Harry briefly, and knelt down, too, to get a look at the Professor.  
  
"Um-Professor Snape? Professor Snape! Can you hear me?" Hagrid tried, tapping Snape's white face. In horror, he stared at his now bloody hands, and began to examine the teacher's limp body. Very carefully, he touched the limbs and the torso, visibly horrified by the amount of blood seeping into the black ropes. He took off his coat and covered Snape with it, trying to make him comfortable. Then, he looked at Harry, and nodded approvingly. "I know that he isn't exac'ly your favourite teacher, Harry, an' he's no friend o' mine, either, but this..." He needn't continue, Harry understood him perfectly well.  
  
Severus Snape shivered with cold, even though he was still unconscious. "'e's lost a lot of blood, an' I don't want to imagine the pain he must be in."  
  
Hagrid shook Snape's shoulder again, tenderly, trying to bring him round, lacking the skill to revive a person by magic.  
  
Snape moaned, and opened his black eyes slowly. After a while, they seemed to focus a bit, and he looked at Hagrid. "Hagrid-I---" he tried to speak, and strained to sit up, but Hagrid gently pushed him down again, saying "It's alrigh'. Everything's going te be alrigh'."  
  
Snape was obviously in agony, coughing, and blood trickled from his mouth. He was breathing with difficulty, and sank back down, closing his eyes and drifted back into unconsciousness.  
  
"If only Ron came back with help." Harry thought, feeling utterly helpless.  
  
Ron had arrived at Hagrid's hut in no time, and knocked on the door until Hagrid woke up. He gave a short and slightly confused report, and very a detailed description of where to find Harry before he left and flew towards the castle. Before he could get to any of the teachers, he ran into the caretaker, Filch, who wouldn't listen to anything Ron said, and dragged him into his office first. However, Ron didn't give up, ran away to look for McGonagall, the head of Gryffindor house. Since she was nowhere to be found, he decided to try and find Professor Dumbledore. He remembered what Harry had told him about how to get to Dumbledore'S office. He ran to the gargoyle, and tried all the sweets he could think of. "Chocolate Frog...Bertie Bott's All Flavour Beans...oh, come on, open...cauldron cake? Sugar quill? Cokcroach cluster? Butterbeer? ...Mint Humbug?...um..." Suddenly, the passageway opened, and Ron rushed in, running up the stairs, shouting "Professor Dumbledore! Professor!".  
  
"Mr. Weasley." A gentle voice said behind him. Professor Dumbledore. "What are you doing here at this time of night?"  
  
Ron tried to explain what had happened, and Professor Dumbledore listened closely. He just nodded and said: "Let's get Professor McGonagall." They went to find the head of Gryffindor house, and found her in the staff room, where she was discussing a student with Professor Sprout. When Dumbledore arrived, she took one look at his face, made her excuses to Professor Sprout, and followed him outside, where he quickly informed her.They left, with Ron leading the way. Seeing that the weather had changed for the worse, they assumed that Harry and Hagrid had taken Professor Snape into Hagrid's hut to protect him from the rain and storm.  
  
As the first heavy raindrops fell, Harry thought that Hagrid might be crying. As the rain got stronger, he realised that he had been mistaken.  
  
"'Arry, we'll have to get him into my hut." Hagrid stated, and took the injured teacher into his arms, lifting him carefully, afraid to cause further injury. Harry picked up Snape's wand, which was still lying on the ground nearby.  
  
Slowly and carefully, they walked towards Hagrid's hut, Fang leading the way and Harry following. It was a grim procession through the night. Neither Hagrid nor Harry felt like talking. It was raining heavily now, so that they could hardly see, and a storm was building up. Harry felt that he was wet to the bone, and the raindrops felt like they were cutting into his skin. Finally, they reached Hagrid's home, and rushed inside. A fire was burning in the fireplace, it was warm and comfortable, although the storm was howling around the hut. Hagrid carefully put Professor Snape down on his own bed, trying to make him as comfortable as possible. He produced a piece of cloth from somewhere, and dried and cleaned Snape's face, wiping away the blood which was still flowing freely from several cuts on his forehead. He then turned to Harry, who had taken a seat near the fire, and said "Have some tea, you know where everything is." Seeing that Harry was watching the unconscious teacher, he attempted a smile, and said: "We've done what we could. Ron is going to be back with help soon." That second, Severus Snape stirred, and regained consciousness once more. He looked around, confused, and tried to force himself into a sitting position. Pain forced him to abandon this idea, and, as he saw Harry, he tried to speak, but didn't manage to. " Lie still." Hagrid said gently. "Don't try to speak, you'll only make it worse." Snape relaxed a bit, his eyes closed again, and he drifted off again. Harry found some clean mugs and a pot of tea, which was still very hot, and poured some for Hagrid and himself. "What's taking them so long?" Harry wondered, looking out of the window.  
  
Both Hagrid and Harry were sitting near the fire quietly, each lost in thoughts and sipping their hot tea. Fang, who had been very agitated by the smell of blood, had calmed down and was sleeping at their feet. They all jumped when there was a knock on the door. Hagrid held Fang, and Harry rushed to the door. Finally, Professor Dumbledore, Professor McGonagall and Ron entered. Ron stayed in the background, holding Harry's Firebolt, which he had been carrying all the time, while the teachers rushed over to their colleague.  
  
"Severus? Can you hear me?" Dumbledore asked softly, putting his hand on Snape's forehead. "Let's get him back to the castle quickly. Ron, go and wake Madame Pomfrey, we'll be needing her."  
  
A stretcher appeared next to Dumbledore, hovering, and Hagrid placed Snape onto it, covering him with a thick blanket. "Thank you, Hagrid. You can stay here, we don't want too many people wandering around the castle...we shouldn't draw too much attention to this, you understand. " Hagrid nodded, and said Goodnight as the others left. "We'll come to see you tomorrow." Harry promised, speaking for himself, Ron and Hermione.  
  
Quickly, and in silence, they walked back to the castle, and straight into the infirmary. One bed was occupied, but the curtains around it had been closed, so that the person sleeping there would not see what was going on. Snape was placed on an empty bed, and Madame Pomfrey sent them all away, closing the curtains around this bed so that she could work without being disturbed.  
  
Now, Dumbledore turned to face Harry, as did Professor McGonagall. Ron had been sent back to bed by Madame Pomfrey, and she had made him promise not to talk to anybody.  
  
"So, Harry, what happened? Why were you out there?" Dumbledore asked.  
  
Harry told them about his dream, and the pain in his scar, and about the strange feeling he had had...Dumbledore just nodded, and, when he finished his story, he simply said: " I understand, and I am grateful that you saved Professor Snape's life. But you know that you should have come to me instead of doing this on your own. I don't need to tell you about the dangers of what you did. I think that we should all be happy that no-one was killed tonight. And I believe that it is clear that all that happened tonight never leaves this room. Don't tell anybody, including Miss Granger, and don't talk about it to Ron. As for Professor Snape-even if he knows that you saved him, don't expect him to act differently towards you. Just don't mention it." Harry nodded to this.  
  
"No, you have to rest now. No, I cannot allow that." They could hear Madame Pomfrey insisting. She emerged from behind the curtains, looking worried, but trying hard to smile.  
  
"I have done all I could. He's very week, but I think he is going to be alright. He's asking for you, and won't rest until he has spoken to you." She nodded towards Dumbledore, who followed her behind the curtains. Harry could hear their voices, but couldn't understand what was being said.  
  
Dumbledore returned, looking pale and worried. "Harry, Professor McGonagall is going to walk you back to Gryffindor tower. Try to get some sleep, and don't forget what I said."  
  
Harry nodded and left with his teacher, who had put a hand on his shoulder, leading him gently. Suddenly, he remembered that he had picked up Snape's wand, and gave it to Professor McGonagall. Harry was very tired now, and all he wanted to do was to go to bed, sleep and forget about the last hour or two. When he changed back into his pyjamas, he noticed that Ron, who was already asleep, had returned the broom to it's usual place and had even thought about returning the invisibility cloak, which was folded neatly and lying on Harry's bed.  
  
Harry was asleep before his head hit the pillow, and he entered a peaceful and dreamless sleep.  
  
When Professor Snape didn't turn up for his lessons the following day, all kinds of rumours were spreading in the whole school, but none was close to the truth. Professor Dumbledore announced that Professor Snape had been taken ill, but that he would be back in a couple of days.  
  
One week later, as Harry's class went to their Potions lesson, Snape was waiting for them, sitting at his desk, looking as mean as always, maybe only a shade paler and strangely tired. His movements were a bit slower, and he remained seated for the whole lesson. Harry glimpsed a white bandage around his arm, covered by his usual black robes. Snape stared at Harry menacingly, as usual, and began his lesson. Ignoring Hermione, who was waving her hand high in the air to show that she knew the answer to his question, he first picked on Neville Longbottom, then on Harry, taking points off Gryffindor for any reason he could think of. When the lesson was over, he said "Potter, you stay." As everybody else left, the Slytherins (especially Draco Malfoy) laughed at Harry, expecting him to be punished, while the Gryffindors gave him looks full of sympathy.  
  
When everybody else left, Snape looked up from the spontaneous written test he had made them do that day, his black eyes meeting Harry's green eyes.  
  
"Potter- I just wanted to say-" he paused.  
  
Harry couldn't believe what he just heard. Was Snape going to thank him?  
  
  
  
"-that I have taken fifty points from Gryffindor for your leaving your dorm at night. Plus, there's a week's detention for both you and Weasley. Come to my office at eight o'clock tonight. If it had been my choice, I would have had you expelled. That is all, you may leave now."  
  
Harry nodded, grabbed his things and left quickly, fighting a mad urge to laugh and curse Snape at the same time. How could he have thought that Snape would thank him? His amusement turned into anger, and he felt that he hated Snape as much as always. Still, somehow, this was funny, although Ron wouldn't see the funny side of this, he was sure, and detention with Snape wasn't going to be much fun, either.  
  
But he was glad that everything was back to normal.  
  
The End 


End file.
